Tuesday, April 25, 2006 | 7:06 a.m.
For more information, go to www.childabusepreventionnevada.org or call 433-4331.
A mother's determination to bring something positive from the abuse that her son suffered at the hands of a nanny has spawned a nonprofit agency focused on preventing the same thing from happening to other children.
Although the agency still is searching for a building, the Southern Nevada Child Abuse Prevention Center will be officially launched Thursday during an event at the Panevino Restaurant on Via Anthony Avenue.
Initially funded by private donations, the agency plans to begin offering programs while it continues its hunt for a home.
"We are opening it up to the community at large because child abuse has no ZIP code," Flora Jackson, the center's executive director, said.
Las Vegans Paula Yakubik and her husband, Jason Kuckler, started planning the agency after their then-3-month-old son, Ryan, was injured when he was shaken and slapped by his nanny in December 2004.
The nanny, Bethany Ford, pleaded guilty to one count of child abuse and is awaiting sentencing. Although Ryan recovered, he still suffers some ill effects from the abuse.
The center is modeled after California's Orange County Child Abuse Prevention Center, which since being founded in 1984, when it aided 20 families, has grown into a program that last year served 5,000 families and 16,000 children.
Organizers of the Southern Nevada center traveled to California to learn about programs developed there in the hope of duplicating that success here.
"We plan to start with one program, Bridges for Newborns, and develop others as we go," Jackson said. "We're depending on the generosity of the community for initial support."
Ruth Weaver of the Orange County program said support is vital.
"Especially in the beginning, the involvement of the community is important in two main areas - offering support for fundraising programs and also advertising the availability of the programs that are being offered in the community," Weaver said.
The Bridges for Newborns program is designed to provide a temporary support system to ease the transition to family life for new parents.
"A lot of new parents in Las Vegas don't have family to operate as a support system," Jackson said. "Being a parent is tough, and we hope to provide someone to reach out to."
The center will provide in-home services by a licensed social worker and volunteers, including basic infant care, child development and child safety.
Child abuse is an ever-worsening problem in Southern Nevada. From 2000 to 2005 the number of Child Protective Services investigations increased from 6,359 to 9,706, with the number rising by 9 percent in each of the last two years.
Over the same five-year period, the number of shelter placements rose from 3,589 to 5,792.
"It's part of a disturbing new trend that the Clark County Division of Family Services is working to face," Michael Kahn, a spokesman for the division, said.
Jackson hopes the center can help reverse that trend.
"Our goal is to stop abuse before it starts and break the cycle of abuse," Jackson said. "We want to assist new parents so they don't become part of the system."
Weaver said the Orange County program has had great success in getting new parents to confront their susceptibility toward potential child abuse.
"We receive many clients through referrals, but we also have plenty of parents - especially low-income and young parents - contacting us," Weaver said.
While parents often seek physical assistance, they also are receptive to ideas on how to reduce the stress of parenting, Weaver said.
As funds become available, the center hopes to add more programs, including a Suddenly Parents program that will assist children living with relatives other than their parents because of child abuse.
The organization, which has already raised more than $100,000, has applied for funds from the county while continuing its private fundraising efforts.
A more immediate need however, is a permanent home. Weaver said a centrally located facility would be preferable to provide convenient access to the greatest number of people.
In the meantime, information about its programs is available through the organization's Web site or its office at Yakubik's MassMedia public relations company.
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